Page 17 - EurOil Week 24 2022

NEWS IN BRIEF

between Serbia and Bulgaria started in in Poland. opposition to secure backing for its 2022
February this year. It will help diversify The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) budget.
gas supplies to Serbia, which is currently expects total Polish petroleum product The Norwegian oil industry lobby said
dependent on imports of Russian gas. demand to rise by around 4% this year to it was disappointed by the move to stop oil
Mihajlovic told Euronews Serbia on June 8 reach 633,000 bpd, with transportation companies drilling in the three Barents Sea
that with the Nis-Dimitrovgrad gas pipeline, accounting for nearly two thirds of this. offshore blocks at a time when Europe is
Serbia will be able to cover approximately The sale of the stake in the refinery allowed seeking new supplies to wean itself off Russian
40% of its consumption from other suppliers, the planned merger between the Polish fuel imports.
according to the government statement. companies to proceed, in compliance with The Socialist Left opposition demanded
Azerbaijan is one of the potential alternative judgement from the European Commission. the blocks be removed from the APA licensing
sources of gas, said Mihajlovic, adding that Meanwhile, in order to satisfy European round as a condition for supporting the
the goal is to connect with Croatia, which is anti-trust legislation, Hungary’s MOL agreed budget presented by Norway’s minority
expanding the storage capacity on Krk island, to buy 417 Lotos fuel stations for $610mn and center-left government, lawmakers said.
but also with Romania, which could make signed a long-term fuel supply deal with PKN A Socialist Left lawmaker said the
Serbia a transit country through a regional gas for its new Polish retail network. In return, government would no longer present
network. MOL will sell 185 fuel stations in Hungary a proposal for exploring the blocks to
Mihajlovic recalled that Serbia has an and Slovakia to PKN for $259mn. parliament, which had in the past approved
agreement with Russia’s Gazprom on the such proposals.
purchase of 2bn cubic metres of gas per year. Waters close to the ice sheet are important
“We will lease additional capacities in the Lithuania to probe Viada and feeding grounds for Arctic species, from
warehouse in Hungary and no matter how zooplankton to polar bears and whales.
complicated the winter is, we will have enough Baltic Petroleum links to Russia “We are disappointed that blocks are
gas for citizens and companies,” she said. being withdrawn from the next APA round,”
The deputy prime minister added that the Lithuania‘s governmental commission, the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association, an
construction of a new underground gas which examines the transactions of strategic industry lobby, said in a tweet after the deal
storage facility, which will be owned by Serbia, companies, is investigating the Russian links was announced.
is also planned. of Viada and Baltic Petroleum petrol chains, Norway, Europe’s second-largest oil and
Mihajlovic underlined that unfortunately 15min.lt news website reported on June 8. gas producer behind Russia, is playing a major
Serbia is importing electricity on a daily According to Neringa Andrijauskiene, role in helping the European Union shift away
basis to cover between 12% and 15% of the head of the Central Purchasing from reliance on Russian fuel after Moscow’s
total consumption and imports will be also Organisation (CPO), the screening of invasion of Ukraine.
needed in the future period, due to the lack of suppliers started in April, in line with the “We are in the middle of an energy crisis
investment in the coal sector. amendments to the Public Procurement where Europe is trying to get rid of all Russian
Law, which say that suppliers and sub- gas. The EU is also asking Norway to deliver
suppliers can be rejected if their managers as much gas as possible,” the lobby said.
PKN Orlen moots petchem are permanent residents or citizens of any oil companies and no drilling had been
The three blocks had yet to be awarded to
“hostile countries”, which includes Russia
projects with Aramco and Belarus. planned till now.
“The most complicated and time-

Polish refiner PKN Orlen anticipates the consuming part of the process is the
imminent announcement of petrochemical verification of fuel suppliers that are in UK launches first CCS round
projects in collaboration with Saudi Aramco CPO’s electronic catalogue,” Andrijauskiene
following last week’s completion of its merger said, referring to the suppliers of Viada and The UK-based North Sea Transition Authority
with compatriot Grupa Lotos. Baltic Petroleum. (NSTA) on Tuesday launched UK’s first-ever
The projects will be worth “several billion The Viada petrol station chain is owned carbon storage licensing round with 13 areas
US dollars” and will be executed with Saudi by Ivan Paleichik’s family business Vaizga. available.
Aramco as well as its subsidiary Saudi Basic Baltic Petroleum is managed by Paleichik’s “The new carbon storage areas, alongside
Industries Corp. (SABIC), PKN Orlen CEO son Andrius. the six licences which have been issued
Daniel Obajtek told Polish state news agency Until 2016, Paleichik was head of Lukoil previously, could have the ability to make
PAP on June 8. Baltija, a chain of petrol stations owned by a significant contribution towards the aim
PKN Orlen and Saudi Aramco were the Russian oil giant Lukoil. of storing 20-30 million tonnes of carbon
brought together by the Polish company’s In spring 2016, Lukoil Baltija was taken dioxide (CO2) by 2030,” the NSTA, formerly
plans to take over peer Lotos. over by Austria’s Amic Energy Management. known as the
In January, Aramco agreed a deal with The latter took over the management of The areas being offered for licensing are
Grupa Lotos that included a 30% stake in around 230 petrol stations in Lithuania, off the coast of Aberdeen, Teesside, Liverpool
the 210,000 barrel per day (bpd) Lotos Asfalt Latvia, and Poland. The management of and Lincolnshire in the Southern North Sea,
refinery in Gdansk at a cost of $255mn as well these petrol stations in Lithuania and Latvia Central North Sea, Northern North Sea, and
as 100% of wholesale business Lotos SPV 1 for was taken over by Luktarna and Viada East Irish Sea and are made up of a mixture of
$250mn, and 50% in the Lotos-Air BP Polska Baltija, which are related to Paleichik. saline aquifers and depleted oil and gas field
jet fuel marketing joint venture with BP for an storage opportunities.
undisclosed fee. “This round is envisaged to be the first of
PKN also signed a deal for 200,000- Norway removes three Arctic many as it is estimated that as many as 100
337,000 bpd of crude from Aramco, meaning CO2 stores could be required in order to meet
that Saudi crude could account for up to blocks from licensing round the net zero by 2050 target,” the NSTA said.
45% of PKN’s total feedstock, with flows to
be directed to refineries including those at Norway’s minority government will remove
Kralupy and Litvinov in the Czech Republic, three Arctic oil exploration blocks from its
Mazeikiai in Lithuania and Plock and Gdansk licensing round as part of a deal with the

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